Get ready to dive into the wonderfully weird world of Fantasmas starring Dylan O’Brien in red lingerie and Alexa Demie in a suit. This wacky HBO comedy series boasts a star-studded cast that’ll leave you in stitches. Here’s the scoop on all the wild details we’ve managed to snag so far.
When Is ‘Fantasmas’ About?
Created, directed, written and starring Julio Torres, Fantasmas tracks the adventures of Julio on a quest for a coveted oyster earring. Along the way, he navigates through a surreal, parallel New York City, encountering a motley crew of characters in quirky, introspective, and often spooky vignettes. This offbeat comedy intertwines tales of individuals seeking meaning, purpose and human connection in a world growing ever more detached.
Julio first pitched Fantasmas to HBO back in 2020, which was a dream of his since creating his own dreamlike sketches on Saturday Night Live, where he was writer for around four years, known for viral sketches such as “Papyrus” and “Wells for Boys.”
“I really loved the idea of telling short stories and having a show of vignettes,” Julio tells Entertainment Weekly in April 2024 of the show. “I also felt like I’m not the kind of performer who was interested in doing me as various characters. I like to think of myself like a master of ceremonies.”
And while the show is not necessarily entirely autobiographical, the plot is based on a real-life oyster earring Julio had bought several years ago.
“I bought a beautiful little oyster earring that I lost immediately in a club on New Year’s Eve, 2020,” he told the outlet. “It was like, ‘3-2-1, Happy New Year, where’s my earring?’ I spent most of the night looking for it! I was so upset that I went back home and was like, ‘I’m going to sell a show about this. Because something good needs to come out of this.’”
Who Stars In ‘Fantasmas’?
Along with Dylan and Alexa, the guest starring actors seen in the trailer also include Emma Stone, Steve Buscemi, Tomás Matos, Paul Dano, Aidy Bryant and Rachel Dratch, just to name a few.
Producers of the show also include Emma Stone and her husband Dave McCary, who frequently collaborated with Julio at SNL.
“It was complete heaven,” Julio said of building his fantasy world to EW. “One of the best things I heard was someone on set referred to it as a group art project, which I take as the highest compliment. Everyone put so much of themselves into it. I like creating sandboxes for people to come and build something together and dream big. But also at the same time, there’s a sort of joyful resilience that comes with being scrappy and making a lot with very little.”
When Does ‘Fantasmas’ Come Out?
The first episode of the HBO series is set to drop on Friday, June 7, with new episodes of the six-episode season debuting weekly.
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